Tope Folarin was born in Ogden, Utah as the son of Nigerian immigrants and he grew up in Grand Prairie, Texas. He studied political science in Atlanta and then received his Master’s as a Rhodes Scholar from the University of Oxford. Following that he worked as a press speaker and
Silvia Ofili was born in 1984 in Nigeria and lives in Lagos, the former capital and now most populous city in the country. The author, who describes herself on Twitter as a dreamer and teacher, uses more than tweeting to speak out on topical social and political issues; she also
Obi Nwakanma was born in Ibadan, Nigeria, in 1966. He studied English and Poetry, and obtained his MFA from Washington University and his PhD from Saint Louis University in the USA. Nwakanma worked as a journalist in Nigeria and wrote articles for international newspapers and magazines. He is also a
Lesley Nneka Arimah was born in London to Nigerian parents in 1983. Depending on where her father was based while working in the oil industry, she grew up in different places, but mainly in Nigeria. When she was 13, her family moved to the United States to settle in Louisiana.
Laolu Senbanjo was born in Ilorin, Nigeria, and today lives in Brooklyn, New York. Alongside his work as a human rights lawyer, he has discovered his true vocation in art and music. In 2007 Senbanjo coined the notion of »afromysterics« to describe his style, which expresses the mysteries of African
Irenosen Okojie was born in Nigeria. At the age of eight, she moved to England with her family. While studying communication and visual culture at London Metropolitan University, she began working as a freelance writer. Her texts have appeared in many outlets, including »The New York Times«, »The Observer«, and
Helon Habila was born in Nigeria. He is a Professor of Creative Writing at George Mason University in Virginia, USA. He studied at the University of Jos in Nigeria, and the University of East Anglia, UK. He is the author of four novels: Waiting for an Angel (2002), Measuring Time
Elnathan John was born in Kaduna, Nigeria. He worked as a lawyer after completing his legal studies at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria before quitting to become a full-time writer in 2012.His short story »Bayan Layi« was shortlisted for the Caine Prize for African Writing in 2013. In it, the author
Epaphras Chukwuenweniwe Osondu was born in Nigeria, where he worked for a long time as an ad writer. As a child, he devoured books like H. Rider Haggard’s adventure novel »King Solomon’s Mines« and Cyprain Ekwensi’s »An African Nights Entertainment«; after writing his first poems, Osondu began writing his own
Chris Abani was born in Afikpo, Nigeria. He published his first novel “Masters of the Board” (1985) at the age of sixteen and for which he suffered severe political persecution. His other novel is “GraceLand” (2004) a coming of age novel about a young Nigerian Elvis impersonator and his struggle
Chibundu Onuzo was born in Nigeria in 1991 as the youngest of four children in a family of doctors and grew up in Lagos. At the age of 14, she moved to the UK to attend a girls’ school in Winchester, Hampshire. After graduating from Kingʼs College London with a
Bibi Bakare-Yusuf was born in 1970 in Lagos, Nigeria. At thirteen, she was sent to private school in England, and later studied communications and anthropology at Goldsmiths, University of London. She went on to do a masters and a PhD. in gender studies at the University of Warwick. Bakare-Yusuf’s thesis
